Cristiano Ronaldo believes he is now "a better man" after the painful end to his Manchester United career.
The Portugal international returned to Old Trafford for a second spell in 2021, after 12 years away from United with Real Madrid and Juventus. He finished as the team's top scorer in the 2021-22 season, but struggled for minutes after Erik ten Hag took over as manager.
Ronaldo was critical of a number of things related to United during an explosive interview with Piers Morgan which aired in the autumn. His contract with the club was terminated by mutual agreement in November, and he is now playing his club football with Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia.
“Sometimes, you have to go through some things to see who is on my side, Ronaldo said in a press conference ahead of Portugal's upcoming Euro 2024 qualifiers (via O Jogo ). The 38-year-old was named in Roberto Martinez's first squad after the Spaniard took over from previous manager Fernando Santos.
"I have no problem saying, I had a bad career run, but there’s no time for regrets," Ronaldo continued. "Life goes on and, doing well or not, it was part of my growth.
“When we are at the top of the mountain, we often cannot see what is below. Now, I’m more prepared and learning that was important, because I had never been through this, like in the last few months. Now I’m a better man.”
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After leaving United but before joining Al-Nassr, Ronaldo was part of Santos' Portugal squad for the 2022 World Cup. He started and scored in a win over Ghana, but had lost his place by the time the knockout rounds came along and failed to find the net as the Euro 2016 champions were eliminated by Morocco at the quarter-final stage.
There had been speculation that his international career might be over, but former Belgium boss Martinez confirmed the veteran remained part of his plans. "Cristiano Ronaldo is a very committed player. He can bring experience and is a very important figure for the team. I don't look at age," Martinez said.
"Football decisions have to be taken on the field of play," the former Everton boss explained upon taking over as Portugal manager. "I'm not an office decision-making coach. So my starting point is to get to all the players and I want to get in touch with them."
Portugal begin their qualifying campaign for Euro 2024 with a double-header of games against Liechtenstein at home and Luxembourg away. The group also contains Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iceland and Slovakia, with the top two finishers qualifying for the tournament proper in Germany.
